The present invention relates to grading equipment, and more particularly to a grader attachment which is removably attached to the front end of a skid steer vehicle for landscaping, leveling, smoothing, grading and spreading dirt, sand, gravel and the like on non-paved surfaces.
Skid steer vehicles are known to provide a high degree of maneuverability and a wide range of applications in the agricultural, industrial and construction fields. The size and maneuverability of the skid steer vehicle make them highly useful for a wide variety of applications. These vehicles generally include an engine, a boom assembly and an operator's cab mounted to a main frame supported by four wheels. A main drive system is coupled to the engine. The skid steer vehicle is operated by an operator seated within the operator's cab and by actuating a pair of steering levers, typically positioned to the left and right sides of the operator. The left lever controls the rotation of the pair of wheels on the left side of the skid steer vehicle and the right lever controls the rotation of a pair of wheels on the right side of the skid steer vehicle.
The boom assembly typically includes a pair of load arm assemblies pivotally mounted to the main frame or a support frame extending upwardly therefrom. Material handling attachments such as a bucket or other working attachments are usually mounted on the forward end of the load arm assemblies. A hydraulic system is usually employed to power the boom assembly between raised and lowered positions via hydraulic cylinders coupled to the load arm assemblies. Typically, a pair of hand or foot controls installed in the operator's cab control the flow of hydraulic fluid to the load arm cylinders.
Besides material handling buckets, various other attachments such as pallet forks, earth augers, backhoes, trenchers, etc., are commonly mounted to the boom assembly. An auxiliary hydraulic system is often used to control the flow of hydraulic fluid between a pump on the frame of the skid steer vehicle and a hydraulic motor in the vicinity of the front-mounted attachment. It is the usual practice in the prior art for the flow of hydraulic fluid to be channeled from the pump to the hydraulic motor associated with the attachment by means of a plurality of hydraulic tubes which are generally directed along the load arm assemblies to the attachment. Alternatively, the attachments may also be connected to the main hydraulic system of the skid steer vehicle.
Prior art grading equipment typically includes a tractor, road grader, bulldozer, or front end loader having a single blade mounted to the front end or center of the grading equipment. This equipment may include different sized blades extending in various configurations. However, their applications have been limited and the range of motion of the blades are generally restricted. The prior art grading equipment utilizing only a single blade requires multiple passes of the grader over an area to be graded. This results in wasted time, increased wear and tear on the equipment, and operator fatigue.
The blade configuration of the present invention requires only a single sweep of the grading area to provide the desired surface, and thereby reducing the time and cost associated with creating a parking lot, driveway or the like. The grader attachment of the present invention is thus very useful and cost effective for grading driveways, parking lots or the like.